South Africa's Tourism Sector Calls for Tangible Results as Industry Gains Priority Status
South Africa's tourism industry has called on government and the private sector to translate the sector's newly designated priority status into concrete outcomes, with improved air access, investment conditions and small business support identified as key priorities. Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) chairman Jerry Mabena made the remarks at the TBCSA Tourism Leadership Conference at Sun City on 28 October, marking the council's 30th anniversary. The conference follows President Cyril Ramaphosa's August announcement of the third phase of the Government-Business Partnership, under which tourism was included as a priority sector alongside mining and agriculture for the first time.
Statistics presented to the conference by Stats SA deputy director-general Joe de Beer underlined the sector's economic weight. Tourism's direct contribution to GDP reached R361.7 billion in 2024, representing 4.9% of the economy - larger than construction, agriculture or utilities - while the sector directly employed 953,981 people, above pre-pandemic levels. Total tourism spending reached R779.2 billion, of which R665.3 billion was domestic. International arrivals surpassed 2019 levels in 2025, with just over one million tourists recorded in August 2026 alone. However, pressure points remain, with domestic overnight trips falling 6.7% in 2025, hotel inflation peaking at 14.6% in March 2026, and fuel inflation reaching 27.9% in September. Mabena stressed that rural and small tourism businesses must share in the sector's growth, warning that full hotels alone do not constitute success if surrounding communities remain excluded from economic benefit.
Source: The National